Special Shards
Some of the Shards you encounter will have special characteristics beyond their terrain attributes (e.g. Lakes, Plains). World of Rust Magic wars of the past have made every weapon and equipment on this shard brittle - the decay rate of all items is five times as normal. A very poor shard for Warriors and Scouts because they heavily rely on equipment. World of Sand Only a small portion of this shard is populated, which means a lower base income for you. Attacking in combat costs an extra Stamina point. Locating Cities of the Ancients are five times as common. Suffocating Heatwaves are six times as common. This is a strong shard for Commanders, as their larger armies can better balance the stamina loss. Necromancy is also stronger than usual here, since undead ignore stamina penalties. Conversely, undead and Necromancer Locations can be surprisingly hard to clear. Crystal World Gold income is halved, while gem income is doubled. If a stronghold is forest terrain, then base gem income from the stronghold +50% (multiplicative with the general bonus). Also if forest terrain, increases base gold&gem income of stronghold by 2 (although the code suggests that this is a mistake and it should be -1 gold income and +1 gem income). Obviously a strong shard for Wizards. World of Knowledge Experience gain rate for heroes and units alike is doubled. Double chance to gain medals. Encountering a Spirit of Knowledge is ten times as common. World of War Everyone on this shard is used to war and strife. Recruitment cost and Upkeep are halved, higher war spoils/loot after every battle. Battle loot amount (both gold and gems) is doubled and chance to gain items from defeated enemies is increased by 20%. Noble Descendant seizures happen twelve times as often. A very strong shard for Commanders, as they can field large armies cheaply here. World of Faith The humans of this world believe every Master is a Heretic, which leads to a lower Mood in all human settlements. Base mood -2 in every human province. Base mood penalty reduced to 1 for all human provinces if you let them worship Lord of Light when given the choice during the campaign. Abandoned Temple locations and Holy Lands provinces are four times as common. World of Magic Spells, rituals and constructing buildings in the magic quarter costs half as normal. Mages Towers are four times as common. Developed World All provinces are explored to a high level, frequently 100%. Locations are very rare. Neutral provinces have their defenders strengthened. Initial explored value of provinces is double the normal. Initial population of provinces is triple the normal. Amount of locations is halved on every province. Each inhabitable province has a chance to have additional buildings constructed from the start: * 30% chance for Mill * 25% chance for Mine or Sawmill * 10% chance for Granary, Pub and Storehouse Province guards of Ring 2 and further have their power increased by 3 (on a scale of 1–19). Practically, this means that each ring after the first one is considered to be 1 further away than it actually is. Prince's Lands are five times as common, Free Settlements are three times as common, and Barbarian Tribes are a third of normal. A challenging shard to attack, as the rarity of locations means XP is hard to come by. Guarded World The players’ lands are separated by mountain ranges. The narrow connecting passes between enemies are protected by strong guards. Always average sized map (10 x 10 hexes) and 4 players. Guarded passes are always Giant Lands. World of Death Nearly the entire Shard is covered with deadlands and deserts. Few provinces are inhabited. Initial explored value of provinces is 85% of normal. Initial population of provinces is 75% of normal. Deadlands are 20 times as common. This leads to a very low base income. World of Fear Morale loss due to wounds and the death of allies is increased and units panic in battle more often. Population mood is lowered, but unrest growth rate is also decreased. Base mood -1 and unrest slowdown +1 in every province. Deadlands are 20 times as common. Necromancy is stronger, as the undead units ignore morale penalties. World of Autumn (Imperium) Wild forests and swamps cover this shard. Harvests are bountiful, but diseases and the hardships of struggle keep the population in check and their tempers flaring. World of Fire (Imperium) The shard is devastated with earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Its population is sparse and income from its provinces negligible, however, magic gems are more plentiful than usual. World of Ice (Imperium) The shard is covered with ice, its population sparse and income from its provinces negligible.Category:Game Mechanics